The Morning Journal (Lorain, OH)
Hyde, Chubb are thunder
Browns running backs hope to punish opponents this season
Somebody is going to wind up sitting in the cold tub soaking their bruises away on Monday mornings this fall, and the Browns hope the ones sinking gingerly into the melting ice are opposing linebackers.
Veteran Carlos Hyde and rookie Nick Chubb are the thunder in the Browns backfield. Duke Johnson is the lightning.
Rather than make tacklers miss, Hyde and Chubb prefer to run over opponents like an 18-wheeler taking out a squirrel. If not for the different numbers on their jerseys (Hyde wears 34 and Chubb 31), it would be difficult telling the two apart when they carry the ball in practice.
“I’d say (Chubb’s running style) is similar — a smash-mouth, downhill, big running back,” Hyde said before practice July 27. “Chubb’s a beast. He’s been doing a great job staying on top of the playbook, coming in. The way he finishes, everything about the kid is good. He’s just an overall player that’s going to come in, help us win and bring a lot to the team.”
Hyde, from Ohio State, was drafted 57th overall by the 49ers in 2014. Knee, foot and ankle injuries prevented him from playing a 16-game schedule until 2017, when he rushed for 936 yards.
He also caught 59 passes under first-year head coach Kyle Shanahan. Hyde rushed for 988 yards in 13 games in 2016.
Chubb, picked 35th overall by the Browns in the 2018 draft, rushed for 4,769 yards (a 6.3 yard average) in four seasons at Georgia.
Chubb has been nicknamed “Old School” by Johnson because of his hard-nosed running style and because he wears a larger than normal helmet. He was pumped to learn Hyde called him a beast.
“That makes me feel good for sure,” Chubb said. “It’s Carlos who’s played at a high level at Ohio State and San Fran, so that gives me a great feeling that somebody of that (caliber) said some good things about me.
“He’s a beast, too. He runs hard, catches the ball real well too.
“He’s a guy I look forward to learning from and looking up to the entire season as long as we’re here together.”
Head coach Hue Jackson and offensive coordinator Todd Haley haven’t spelled out how the workload between Hyde and Chubb will be divided.
Jackson says he wants the Browns to be a running team, but he said the same thing in 2016 and 2017.
It didn’t work out that way, primarily because the Browns were always playing from behind.
“There is a lot more to (Chubb) than what people think because he just looks like the guy that comes downhill and here we go,” Jackson said after practice. “But he has some versatility to him, as well. There are some instincts, real runner’s instincts that I see. I think he’s a talented runner. We’re going to find out more about him when these pads come on.”
Training camp opened on July 26 in Berea. Per the CBA, players can’t be in pads until the third day. That happens July 28 at the Browns’ training complex. Practice begins at 2:30. Admission is free, but the next practice for which tickets are available is Aug. 1.
Hyde delivers more than bruises, too, Jackson said.
“There is no question in my mind about that,” Jackson said. “The guy caught 59 balls last year on top of running for close to 1,000 yards.
“When you look at their body types, you see these big physical men who are 225-plus pounds, and you think all they do is run in between the tackles. I think both of these guys have a little bit more versatility than that, and I think they bring a different dimension to our offense.”